Nikon AF-S 85mm 1.8 G

The Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.8 G is an excellent lens that performs on a very high level in almost every regard. Sharpness is on a very high level in the image center straight from the largest aperture, the borders and corners deliver very good resolution throughout the tested aperture range. Typical for a fast prime there is pronounced vignetting wide open, which can easily be cured by stopping down. The same applies to Bokeh fringing. CAs and distortion are very well controlled though. The biggest surprise is probably the bokeh quality, which is not right up there on the benchmark level set by 85mm f/1.4 lenses, but quite close. The build quality is on a high level and in line with other Nikon consumer prime offerings. Thanks to an AF-S drive autofocus action is virtually silent and quite fast for a portrait lens. So, in summary, for most subjects the lens performs very similar to faster 85/1.4 lenses, but at a fraction of the price. Certainly highly recommended!

The Nikon 85/1.8G is a very good lens and represents excellent value for money. It’s the cheapest 85mm large aperture lens with AF across all Nikon bodies that you can buy and it delivers an image quality that is actually better in some respects than its larger (and 3-4 times pricier) sibling – the Nikon AF-S 85/1.4G. Contrast and sharpness is very good even wide open over the FX image-circle and resistance to color aberrations is also better than with the other 85mm lenses from Nikon. Overall it is a worthy successor to the AF 85/1.8D (which I really wouldn’t recommend buying any more). So it’ll come as no surprise to learn the Nikon AF-S 85mm f/1.8G easily earns our Highly Recommended award.